The Hospital Defendant
Hospitals have a legal duty to make health care as safe as is possible so that the hospital, through practitioners under its aegis, can offer the proper standard of care. When the hospital fails in this regard, a lawyer may consider a negligent credentialing claim where the hospital did not appropriately credential a practitioner and a direct claim of negligence against the hospital where the institution did not have sufficient policies and procedures, and carry them out, in order to protect patients.
Features
Trends in Financial Services Patents
Armed with a well-stocked patent portfolio, a company can effectively corner valuable markets for a limited amount of time. While this concept is second nature for most makers of tangible products, pharmaceuticals, or even software, it is only now becoming widely accepted in the financial services sector. As a result, another battlefield is emerging in which patents are becoming the weapon of choice, and trading floors and back-office processing centers have become the new settings for patent disputes.
Features
Licensees May Challenge a Patent Without Breaching License: The Supreme Court's Decision in MedImmune, Inc. v. Genentech, Inc.
'We hold that petitioner was not required, insofar as Article III is concerned, to break or terminate its 1997 license agreement before seeking a declaratory judgment in federal court that the underlying patent is invalid, unenforceable, or not infringed.'With this language, the U.S. Supreme Court concluded its 8-1 landmark decision in <i>MedImmune, Inc. v. Genentech, Inc.</i>, reversing the holding of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ('Federal Circuit'). This decision has potentially wide-ranging ramifications for patent licensing.
Features
Supreme Court Revisits Test for Deciding Obviousness
The U.S. Supreme Court has recently shown an interest in intellectual property in general and patents in particular. Most prominent among the recent cases is <i>KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc.</i>, which presents perhaps the most difficult question in substantive patent law: When is the subject of a patent application a true 'invention' ' that is, something that promotes the progress of a useful art sufficient to warrant giving the applicant exclusive rights to the technology claimed for the next 20 years. Conversely, when is the invention 'obvious' ' merely taking a step that anyone of ordinary skill would take, confronted with the same problem and possessing all the knowledge already known to the field?
Drug Companies and Failure to Warn
For more than one year, product liability cases have been pending against Merck's osteoporosis drug, Fosamax'. Despite having one of the highest side effect profiles of any drug in the U.S. prescription database, Fosamax remains on the market, and available by prescription. When a drug remains on the market during litigation but the manufacturer refuses to warn about a known risk, places the information about the risk in an obscure location or provides inadequate information about the severity of the risk, there is a public problem ' for both patients and prescribers alike ' in the form of a health hazard about which most prescribers have insufficient information.
Features
News Briefs
Highlights of the latest franchising news from around the country.
Med Mal Litigation
Risk-managing one's medical practice involves gauging the quality of the legal advocacy put forth to advance a physician's professional interests. In medical malpractice litigation, as we all know, victory is fleeting but setbacks are long-lasting. Therefore, as an attorney, expect to be evaluated with an eagle eye ' and respond to your client's fears with professionalism and reassurance.
Features
Court Watch
Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.
Features
<b>Litigation:</b> Paternity and Child Support
Putative father could obtain relief under state statute that granted a substantive, not procedural, right to address potential injustice. <i>The State Ex rel. Loyd, v. Lovelady</i>, 108 Ohio St.3d 86 (Ohio 2006).
Need Help?
- Prefer an IP authenticated environment? Request a transition or call 800-756-8993.
- Need other assistance? email Customer Service or call 1-877-256-2472.
MOST POPULAR STORIES
- Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the RoughThere is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.Read More ›
- Removing Restrictive Covenants In New YorkIn Rockwell v. Despart, the New York Supreme Court, Third Department, recently revisited a recurring question: When may a landowner seek judicial removal of a covenant restricting use of her land?Read More ›
- Professional Development: How to Be An Ally In the Legal ProfessionLast year law firms sent out announcements about their commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts in response to racial tensions. One of the initiatives firms stated they implemented is a formal allyship program. However, allyship in not a program or a mindset. It is a verb.Read More ›
- Digital Dibs: Rival Views of Generative AI CopyrightsGAI platforms like ChatGPT and OpenAI often require very little human input, shattering this legal landscape's framework by posing a simple question: Who authored the material? We'll explore how two countries are answering this question in different ways.Read More ›
- The Brave New World of Cybersecurity Due Diligence in Mergers and Acquisitions: Pitfalls and OpportunitiesLike poorly-behaved school children, new technologies and intellectual property (IP) are increasingly disrupting the M&A establishment. Cybersecurity has become the latest disruptive newcomer to the M&A party.Read More ›